Category: 5. Entertainment

BBC Radio 1 has unveiled the star-studded lineup for Live Lounge Month 2025, bringing some of the biggest global acts and breakthrough artists to its iconic stage this October.

The event begins on Monday, September 29, on Rickie, Melvin and Charlie’s Radio 1 show (10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.), with performances airing at 12 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday throughout the month.

This year’s lineup includes major names such as Lewis Capaldi, Demi Lovato, Conan Gray, mgk, Robbie Williams, Reneé Rapp, Wet Leg, Mumford & Sons and Florence + The Machine. Each act will perform live versions of their biggest hits alongside unique cover tracks.

The 2025 edition also introduces the first-ever Radio 1 Anthems Live Lounge, with Robbie Williams performing on Friday, October 10, to celebrate the launch of the station’s new Radio 1 Anthems channel.

Highlights of the schedule include Conan Gray (Oct. 1), mgk (Oct. 6), Reneé Rapp (Oct. 17), Lewis Capaldi (Oct. 20), Demi Lovato (Oct. 22), Louis Tomlinson (Oct. 29) and Florence + The Machine (Nov. 3). Fans will also get a special Live Lounge Late from Capaldi on October 20, broadcast during Jack Saunders’ New Music Show.

Radio 1 head Aled Haydn Jones described the series as “intimate, unforgettable performances that fans can’t experience anywhere else.” Past Live Lounge sessions have featured Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Olivia Rodrigo and Ed Sheeran, attracting millions of views worldwide.

All Live Lounge Month 2025 performances will be available on Radio 1, BBC Sounds, BBC iPlayer and YouTube, ensuring fans don’t miss a moment of the exclusive music event.

The new mural on London’s High Court is thought to criticise Britain’s crackdown on protests in solidarity with Palestine Action group.

Anonymous street artist Banksy has unveiled a new mural on London’s High Court, depicting a judge striking a protester with a gavel, in what appears to be a commentary on the mass arrests of demonstrators backing the banned campaign group Palestine Action.

The anonymous artist shared images of the work on Instagram on Monday. The stencilled piece shows a bewigged judge bringing down a gavel on a protester sprawled on the ground, clutching a blood-stained placard.

The mural was painted days after nearly 900 people were detained during a protest in London opposing the government’s proscription of Palestine Action.

The artwork has since been fully covered up by British police, after attracting curious bystanders.

In July, Britain designated the activist network a “terrorist organisation” after its members stormed a Royal Air Force base and damaged military aircraft. Supporting or belonging to the group now carries criminal penalties.

But rights groups and campaigners have accused the British government of criminalising pro-Palestinian activism, saying the ban threatens the right to peaceful protest.

Lawyers and civil liberties advocates argue that proscribing Palestine Action sets a dangerous precedent for restricting activism on foreign policy issues, with Amnesty International calling the decision by the Labour government “a disturbing legal overreach”.

Banksy has long used his work to highlight Palestinian struggles under Israeli occupation. His murals in the occupied West Bank include ones that depict a girl conducting a body search on an Israeli soldier, a dove wearing a flak jacket, and a masked protester hurling a bouquet.

In 2017, he opened the “Walled Off Hotel” in Bethlehem, designed to offer what he called “the worst view in the world,” a direct reference to Israel’s separation barrier known as the apartheid wall, which stands in front of the hotel.

The wall that stretches for more than 700km (435 miles) on Palestinian land inside the occupied West Bank was termed illegal by the International Court of Justice in 2004.

One of his most famous West Bank works, a rat armed with a slingshot, was painted near Bethlehem in 2007. The artwork was later removed by Israeli art dealers and displayed in a Tel Aviv art gallery in 2022.

The move was condemned by Jeries Qumsieh, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism, who told The Guardian at the time: “This is theft of the property of the Palestinian people.”

“These were paintings by an international artist for Bethlehem, for Palestine, and for visitors to Bethlehem and Palestine. So transferring them, manipulating them and stealing them is definitely an illegal act,” Qumsieh had said.

The latest London mural has already been cordoned off with protective barriers, underscoring both the value of Banksy’s art and the controversy it generates. While the artist rarely explains his creations, his consistent focus on Palestine ensures this new work will be seen as a sharp critique of Britain’s clampdown on pro-Palestine activism.

For many of his supporters, the High Court mural is not just about Palestine Action but also a broader reflection on how state power and the judiciary are wielded against movements challenging Britain’s political establishment.

In the course of speaking about her wedding, Nora Arrhenius Hagdahl describes herself as “very much a fashion girl,” “a flirty girl,” “a craft girl,” and “a waist girl.” So, to accommodate all of these different aspects of herself, the bride donned three looks over the course of the celebration at which drew creatives from Berlin, London, and Stockholm.

Hagdahl, an art critic and co-founder (with Frida Vega Salomonsson) of Nuda Paper, a culture and fashion magazine, tied the knot with Kornél Kovács a DJ, music producer and co-founder (with Axel Boman and Petter Nordkvist) of the record label Studio Barnhus. They were introduced by a mutual friend one cold and dark winter in 2021. “It was very much like love at first sight,” Hagdahl recalls. “Kornél was basically telling me that he wanted to get married after a couple of times that we met. And I was like, ‘Yeah, sure, let’s make that happen.’ It is just a very natural and electric and fantastic relationship.”

As Nuda regularly stages exhibitions and happenings, Hagdahl took the wedding planning in her stride. “I always dreamed of having a big party for my friends, and because I lived in different places and Kornél has so many friends all over the world, the dream was to have everybody meet,” she says. “That was the big appeal for me, to have all these worlds come together.” This comingling took place at the bride’s parents’ home in Opptuna, about an hour away from Stockholm. The houses on the property, which are surrounded by fields, date to the 18th and 19th century and there is archeological evidence that the area has been inhabited since the early Bronze Age. There was nothing retrograde in the wedding attire, however. The groom wore Our Legacy and the bride’s first dress, made of vintage shirt collars, was by Ellen Hodakova Larsson, whom Hagdahl has previously written for.

The bride’s something old: A Hodakova dress made of vintage collars.

Photo: Luke Sullivan

Henrik Ibsen’s second-most famous play, Hedda Gabler, has been plenty messed around with in recent years. There was a much-derided stage production starring Mary-Louise Parker. There was Liz Meriwether’s sci-fi reimagining, Heddatron. And now there is Nia DaCosta’s film Hedda, a rejiggering of the narrative that places a premium on subterfuge and sexual intrigue. It sometimes lands its intended jolt, but too often mistakes arch style for profundity.

That was also true of DaCosta’s Candyman sequel, an endlessly attractive film that was an otherwise confused update of the 1992 classic. Hedda fares better; it’s the work of a more assured and restrained writer-director, one who is willing to, on occasion, let visual flash take a backseat to more mechanical matters of storytelling. But there is nonetheless a recklessness to DaCosta’s version, its brash iconoclasm throws both baby and bathwater out of the manor-house window.

The action has been transposed from 19th-century Oslo to 1950s Great Britain, where former bohemian free-spirit Hedda (Tessa Thompson) has moved into a sprawling estate with her new husband, pinched and humorless academic George (Tom Bateman). They’ve decided to throw a party, ostensibly to celebrate the house and their return from a long honeymoon, but actually functioning as a way to secure George a crucial teaching position. DaCosta immediately foreshadows that the bash is going to end badly, sending Hedda stalking around the place with a wicked strut, pistol in hand. An old friend – really, an old lover – has just phoned to say she’ll stop by and Hedda seems both unnerved and invigorated by the news.

What Hedda plans to do about the impending arrival of Eileen Lovborg (Nina Hoss) – who is an academic rival of George’s and a mostly out lesbian who refuses to acquiesce to social code in the way that Hedda is at least partially willing to – is, essentially, the mystery of DaCosta’s film. It’s a mousetrap sort of affair, a jury-rigged evening of cruel manipulation all serving Hedda’s grand design for self-preservation.

Which is certainly one facet of Ibsen’s play; Hedda has always been a bit cunning and ruthless, always steadfastly determined to keep herself in the finer things. But DaCosta turns her into a remorseless sociopath. She goes for bite and nastiness in the way of, say, Saltburn, badly boiling away the complexity of one of modern theater’s great characters.

DaCosta takes some pains to tease out an idea of why Hedda has become this way: she is closeted and cosseted, she is Black in a largely white ecosystem, she not unjustifiably fears what may become of her should she lose her tenuous purchase on status. That argument is muddled, though. Race is glancingly mentioned but then never engaged with in a meaningful way. The film has more to say about sexuality, but depictions of queer repression’s dark consequence have been rendered more thoughtfully elsewhere. DaCosta fails to make a properly convincing case for her Hedda’s awful misdeeds.

Thompson tears into the role, plummy accent and all. Her line readings are alternately blithe and venomous, she casts sly and calculating looks across rooms, she coils around her prey with seductive menace. It’s fun to watch, but it’s also too grandly villainous. DaCosta sends Thompson tearing through the film without the guardrails of nuance or credible complication.

Then Hoss storms across the film’s ballroom, dragging the tablecloth with her. Hoss’s performance is a marvel; so marvelous, in fact, that DaCosta can’t help but shift the whole focus of the film on to her. Here is the picture of patriarchy’s warping effect that the film wants to paint elsewhere, here is the worthy and compelling figure of feminist outrage and frustration. As the film follows Eileen (who is a man called Eilert in the original play) on her dismal downward spiral, it finally whips up an unignorable resonance. Hedda, meanwhile, is left to plot in the periphery, making her seem all the more psychotically vicious.

There is maybe indication in DaCosta’s script that said psychotic viciousness is, in fact, some sort of manic depression that has been plaguing poor Hedda. But making that diagnosis requires too much work on the audience’s part, and perhaps too much familiarity with the original text. Watched in a vacuum – which, ideally, adaptations should be able to withstand – DaCosta’s Hedda is an annihilating and ultimately empty portrait of one woman destroying another out of the most basic, boilerplate motivation.

Still, there is the wonder of Hoss’s breakneck work, and the sensory pleasures of DaCosta’s design. She captures the film’s nightmare party in richly saturated color, drenched in the golden glow of practical lighting. DaCosta dexterously moves her camera between rooms, gliding through scenes with smooth, exciting momentum. It’s an impressive feat of technical film-making, which has now become a hallmark of DaCosta’s work. But she caves to baser impulses in reinterpreting an old and, some might say, crusty play. There is a better Hedda Gabler to be made in this modernist, eye-popping mode. It just shouldn’t be one that so readily cheapens a character who’s earned over a century of close and careful attention, for good reason.

Michael Caine is eyeing a return to acting with a sequel to “The Last Witch Hunter” at Lionsgate. The 92-year-old screen legend is set to come out of retirement for the feature, which will also see Vin Diesel return to headline. The sequel is being fast-tracked through development at Lionsgate and Diesel’s production banner One Race Films, Variety has confirmed.

Though a deal for Caine hasn’t been finalized, the actor is expected to reprise his role from the 2015 original “Last Witch Hunter.” Caine played Dolan, a priest who assists Diesel’s warrior Kaulder as he fights to stop a plague propagated by a witch queen.

The original “Last Witch Hunter” was somewhat of a passion project for Diesel, who promoted that the adventure film was an adaptation of his own “Dungeons & Dragons” campaigns, in which he played as the original character of Melkor the Witch Hunter. Released in October 2015 by Lionsgate, the film grossed just $27 million in North America, but proved a stronger draw overseas with $119 million from international territories. Per Lionsgate, the second life of “Last Witch Hunter” on digital and home video, which includes a run as one of the most-watched movies on Netflix this year, led to the sequel’s development 10 years later.

“‘The Last Witch Hunter’ has grown since its theatrical release into a global fan favorite, with audiences continuing to discover and rewatch it across every platform over the past decade. That enduring enthusiasm made clear there is an appetite for more stories set in this world,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture group chair Adam Fogelson in a statement confirming the sequel’s development. “Vin and I have partnered many times over the years, and he is a true force in our industry. I’m thrilled to be reuniting with him as he returns to this iconic role, and excited by how advancements in filmmaking technology now allow us to economically deliver a sequel on an even more ambitious scale.”

“The Last Witch Hunter” sequel would mark Caine’s first feature since announcing his retirement from acting in 2023 at the age of 90. He revealed the decision while promoting his last on-screen turn in Oliver Parker’s “The Great Escaper,” about a World War II veteran who breaks out of his care home for an anniversary commemoration of D-Day.

“I’ve figured, I’ve had a picture where I’ve played the lead and it’s got incredible reviews,” Caine told BBC Radio 4’s Today show at the time. “The only parts I’m likely to get now are old men, 90-year-old men, maybe 85. And I thought, ‘Well, I might as well leave with all this — I’ve got wonderful reviews. What have I got to do to beat this?’”

Bringing the Limited or Anthology Series or Movie division to a close, we take a look at the Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress categories.

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What You’ll Find in This Article

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Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie: The Nominees

The Lead Actor category happens to feature a couple of movie stars who usually get themselves Oscar nominations. What they did on the small screen can hardly be considered slumming, so let’s dive into it and take a look at who’s who and what’s what.

The nominees are:

• Colin Farrell for The Penguin
• Stephen Graham for Adolescence
• Jake Gyllenhaal for Presumed Innocent
• Cooper Koch for Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
• Brian Tyree Henry for Dope Thief

Bryan Tyree Henry’s Performance in Dope Thief

Brian Tyree Henry is quickly becoming one of those actors who have to be seen every time he shows up in something (seriously, he never makes a misstep).

Even in a lesser work like, say, the Marvel movie Eternals, you have to acknowledge that he is at the top of his craft. Is he one of the best actors of his generation, and it’s only a matter of time before he starts winning these awards by the barrel? This year is not when this is going to start, but it’s important to note these things. 

Jake Gyllenhaal and Colin Farrell Square Off

The movie stars come next. Jake Gyllenhaal gives a fabulous performance in Presumed Innocent, the David E. Kelley reimagining of the Harrison Ford movie from the early ’90s (based on a book written in the ’80s).

It’s hard to follow in the footsteps of a legend, but Gyllenhaal made the role his own. Colin Farrell’s transformation into the Penguin, meanwhile, was unrecognizable in The Batman three years ago and is still jarring. The unbridled evil dripping off that performance was strong enough to require a shower after viewing.

In other years, I think Farrell would be the frontrunner. It’s a shame that two actors are lined up in front of him.

The Verdict: Cooper Koch vs. Stephen Graham

Cooper Koch’s breakout performance as Erik Menendez in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story took everyone by surprise. Turning a convicted murderer into a multifaceted and, arguably, sympathetic figure is hard enough, but consider that it’s the first major role of his career, much less the first lead role, and it becomes even more impressive. It’s an astonishing piece of work that establishes him as a young actor to watch. 

In any other year, I think he would be something of a shoo-in for this thing. Unfortunately, this year he’s up against Stephen Graham, the star and co-creator of Adolescence. Graham has made a successful career out of cops, criminals, thugs, lowlifes and others of the type.

Eddie Miller is similar to these guys, but he’s a working-class gent, a devoted family man who owns his own business and only wants the best for his two children.

Graham appears in just two of the series’ four episodes, specifically the first and last ones. Still, in those episodes, he shows us a father’s desperation as he so badly wants to believe his son is not capable of the horrible thing he’s accused of doing, struggles to keep his family together, and ultimately has to face the reality of the situation. 

The show’s final scene, as Eddie kisses his son’s teddy bear and realizes that he is guilty of every parent’s nightmare — failing his child — is utterly devastating, and perhaps the finest moment of an already impressive career. 

With apologies to the young Mr. Koch, who now has a burgeoning career of his own and will surely be back here sooner rather than later, this is Stephen Graham’s award to lose.

Who Should Win: Stephen Graham

Who Will Win: Stephen Graham

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie: The Nominees

We now get to the one category in this division that doesn’t have anyone from Adolescence in it, which means that we’re going to have a very different conversation. 

The nominees are:

• Cate Blanchett for Disclaimer
• Cristin Milioti for The Penguin
• Michelle Williams for Dying for Sex
• Meghann Fahy for Sirens
• Rashida Jones for Black Mirror

Rashida Jones vs. Cate Blanchett

I have to admit to never being a huge Black Mirror fan, just because that particular kind of dystopian storytelling doesn’t tend to be my thing. Call me a delicate flower if you must, but there it is.

I’ve seen episodes here and there, and when these nominations were announced, I watched the episode for which Rashida Jones was nominated, so I know enough to talk about it.

Jones is a skilled actress and a talented writer (who had written an episode in a previous season of the show), and her performance in this particular episode is pretty powerful. That said, I think this is one of those nominations that is its own reward.

Cate Blanchett is one of the best actresses on the planet, and I think that’s why she earned this nomination. This is the second time she’s earned an Emmy nod for a performance (she also earned one for producing Mrs. America), and I think the odds are in her favor that she will someday win one; I just don’t think it’s this year.

The show, directed by the brilliant Alfonso Cuarón, never really found an audience, and while it’s good, I don’t think enough people care about it to give it a win here. 

The Case for Meghann Fahy

The most interesting nominee in this category is actually Meghann Fahy, who was nominated previously for season 2 of The White Lotus. This is an actress whose star is on the rise, and I think it’s only a matter of time before she hits the stratosphere.

Sirens was a fun show that sort of fell apart at the end, but Fahy ably holds the whole thing together. This nomination feels like a signal to the industry that people are paying attention to her, and we’re going to be seeing a lot more of her in the days, weeks, and months to come.

Ultimately, though, I think this race is between Cristin Milioti and Michelle Williams.

The Verdict: Cristin Milioti Goes Head-to-Head With Michelle Williams

If you’ve been paying attention, you know how talented Milioti is, and that it was only a matter of time before she landed a role like Sofia Falcone. Sofia is a dark, devious, nearly perfect villain, and Milioti not only holds her own with costar Colin Farrell, she owns every scene she’s in. 

Williams, meanwhile, has been giving us spectacular work for a couple of decades now, with Oscar and Emmy nominations galore, and a win six years ago for playing Gwen Verdon in Fosse/Verdon opposite Sam Rockwell.

Williams is absolutely devastating as Molly, the woman dying of cancer who decides to go out on her own terms. It’s one of those multifaceted roles that expertly mixes tragedy and comedy, with laughs one moment and tears the next.

It’s remarkable, and completely different from what Milioti does, though what she does is remarkable, too.

I think this is a toss-up. If it were up to me, I might root for a tie, but since that’s not going to happen, I’m going to say that Milioti’s villainous turn is going to get a couple more votes than Williams’ tragicomic one. Does she deserve it more? Maybe by the tiniest, thinnest hair. Maybe.

Who Should Win: Cristin Milioti (by a tiny, thin hair)

Who Will Win: Cristin Milioti 

Final Takeaways

The latest Emmy nominees in limited series show that great performances come from a mix of seasoned pros and breakout newcomers. Whether transforming into chilling villains or deeply flawed family men, these actors prove that commitment and nuance matter. If you’re an up-and-coming actor aiming to make your mark, here are some takeaways from this year’s standout contenders:

• Don’t shy away from morally ambiguous or difficult roles. They can showcase your range and depth.
• Even with limited screen time, a powerful, memorable moment can define your career.
• Take risks with character transformations; the more unrecognizable you are, the more you stand out.
• Build your craft steadily. Consistency keeps you on industry radars.
• Collaborate and create. Involvement beyond acting can sharpen your perspective and opportunities.

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Pamela Anderson’s sex tape with Tommy Lee cost her a lot—and put her under a lot of scrutiny.

But neither she nor the Mötley Crüe drummer ever saw a major payday from it. The upcoming docuseries Secrets of Celebrity Sex Tapes, premiering Sept. 8 at 10 p.m., revisits the 1997 scandal, featuring insight from Nicole Eggert, Traci Bingham and more. One hot topic stemming from the controversy? Whether the pair themselves profited from sales of the footage.

“I know firsthand that Pam and Tommy made not one dime off that video,” Cort St. George says in the series. “They didn’t demand any money. I know that they turned down money.”

Anderson and Lee had filmed themselves having sex during their 1995 honeymoon, months before it was stolen from their Los Angeles home. However, it wasn’t until 1997 that now-defunct Internet Entertainment Group, who had obtained the video, began selling copies online.

The former couple—who divorced in 1998—filed a copyright lawsuit and won their case on appeal in 2002, with the judge granting the Baywatch alum and the musician $740,000 apiece in a default judgment against IEG, whose reps never showed up in court to defend the company, per Entertainment Weekly.

Some of the biggest names in music assembled in New York Sunday night for the time-honored tradition of the MTV Video Music Awards, only this time on an even bigger stage.

In addition to the cable channel that created it, the VMAs also aired live on CBS (and its streaming service Paramount+) for the first time in its 41-year history.

The move seeks to expand the award show’s reach after last year’s milestone 40th anniversary broadcast, which CBS says “delivered its biggest multi-network audience in four years … and ranked as the most social VMAs in show history.”

Notably, this year brings the VMAs — sometimes called “the Super Bowl for youth” — to the broadcast network with the oldest primetime audience.

The show made some changes this time around, like adding two new award categories — best pop artist and best country — to spotlight rising talent while also honoring a slew of veteran stars, like Mariah Carey and Ricky Martin.

And while the numbers aren’t in yet, this year’s VMAs certainly had their share of viral red carpet moments (see: Doja Cat taking a bite out of her lipstick), onstage performances (including Tate McRae’s impassioned dance break) and acceptance speech sound bites (like Rosé and Ariana Grande each thanking their therapists (“and gay people,” in Grande’s case).

Here’s a look at some of the highlights.

Mariah Carey and Busta Rhymes get their long-awaited honors

Carey graced the stage in a glimmering gold bodysuit to perform a medley of her hits before Ariana Grande literally bowed down and presented her with the most prestigious award of the night: the Video Vanguard Award.

It was Carey’s first VMA appearance in 20 years, and the first time she’s won a “Moon Person” trophy — a snub she had joked about years earlier. Despite her soon-to-be-16 studio albums and six Grammy awards, it wasn’t until Sunday that Carey won her first Moon Person trophy, when “Type Dangerous” was crowned the best R&B video during the pre-show.

“I can’t believe I’m getting my first VMA tonight,” Carey later said while accepting the lifetime achievement award. “I just have one question: What in the Sam Hill were you waiting for?”

As the crowd cheered, Carey clarified that she was kidding before reminiscing on some of her favorite memories from past VMAs and her vast catalogue of music videos, from playing her own stalker in Obsessed to making a romantic, James Bond-esque escape in Honey.

“After all this time, I’ve learned that music evolves, videos evolve, but the fun — that is eternal,” she said.

Hip-hop legend Busta Rhymes also finally got his flowers, after performing an impassioned mashup of his hit songs — including “Break Ya Neck,” “Touch It” and “Scenario” — joined by rappers Joyner Lucas, Papoose and GloRilla, all dressed in red leather ensembles.

LL Cool J presented him with the inaugural Rock the Bells Visionary Award. It’s Rhymes’ first win, despite being nominated for 16 VMAs throughout his career.

“Y’all know I usually do these long speeches, I’m not gonna do one today,” the rapper and record producer said in his speech. “But next time y’all take 35 years to give me one of these, y’all gonna let me talk as long as I want!”

Rhymes went on to pay tribute to the “late, great, incredible royal empress” Ananda Lewis, the former MTV VJ who died of breast cancer earlier this year.

“I think we all need to acknowledge the incredible woman [who] loved us when we came to MTV during the ’90s,” he said. “She loved us, she loved the culture [and] she lifted us up.”

Sabrina Carpenter spotlights drag queens 

Carpenter performed the song “Tears” from her recently released album Man’s Best Friend for the first time, standing up — and dancing — for transgender rights in the process.

She turned the stage into a slice of 1980s-era New York City: entering through a pothole, getting fake-flashed by a man in a trench coat, singing from a phone booth and pulling off a rain-drenched dance break, flanked by bare-chested police officers.

Carpenter was joined onstage by backup dancers and a number of high-profile RuPaul’s Drag Race queens posing as well-choreographed protesters. They held up signs with slogans like “Support local drag,” “Protect trans rights” and “If you hate you’ll never get laid.”

Later, after winning best album for 2024’s Short n’ Sweet, Carpenter thanked “my queens onstage with me tonight.”

“This world, as we all know, can be so full of criticism and discrimination and negativity,” she said. “So to get to be part of … something that can bring you light, make you smile, make you dance, and make you feel like the world is [yours], I’m so grateful. So grateful to do that.”

Ricky Martin makes history 

Ricky Martin also performed, descending onstage in a cage to sing “Livin’ la Vida Loca” and other hits before receiving the show’s inaugural Latin Icon Award.

It was presented by Jessica Simpson, who opened for Martin on his Livin’ la Vida Loca tour in 1999.

“This is for you all. Thank you so much for your applause. I am addicted to your applause, that’s why I keep coming back,” Martin said. “It’s been 40 years. I started when I was a baby, working, and we’re still here.”

He dedicated the award to his four kids, saying, “Everything I do, I do with you in my mind and my heart.”

A rocking tribute to Ozzy Osbourne 

Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, English singer Yungblud and guitarist Nuno Bettencourt joined forces to pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne, the Black Sabbath frontman who died in July at age 76.

The late heavy metal icon’s son Jack introduced the act with his four kids in a pre-recorded video, saying he wished he could be there in person and that he knows it would make his dad “incredibly happy to see these great musicians carry on his legacy and help inspire the next generation of rockers.”

“In the words of our papa — let’s go crazy!” the family members concluded in unison.

Onstage, Yungblud sang “Crazy Train” and “Changes,” accompanied by Bettencourt. He then joined the Aerosmith members to sing “Mama, I’m Coming Home,” ending with a group hug and a cry of “Ozzy forever, man!”

Lady Gaga’s monstrous multitasking 

Lady Gaga was the night’s most-nominated artist, with 12 nods. She won four, bringing her career total to 22 wins — the third-most behind Taylor Swift and Beyoncé.

But perhaps even more impressive was how she managed to be in two places at once. Gaga started the night by accepting the award for artist of the year.

“I cannot begin to tell you how much this award means to me,” she said in a visibly emotional speech, dedicating it to her fans and her fiancé.

She concluded: “I wish I could stay and watch all these amazing performances, but I have to go back to Madison Square Garden.”

Then she booked it out of UBS Arena in Long Island to Manhattan’s Madison Square Garden, where she was scheduled to perform at her Mayhem Ball tour in front of a sold-out crowd — despite being advertised as one of the VMAs performers.

Lady Gaga managed the balancing act like a bona fide magician, thanks to a gorgeously grotesque pre-recorded performance of “Abracadabra” and “The Dead Dance” at Madison Square Garden that played during the VMAs.

Here’s the full list of winners:

• Video of the year: Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
• Artist of the year: Lady Gaga
• Song of the year: ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
• Best new artist: Alex Warren
• Best pop artist: Sabrina Carpenter
• Best pop: Ariana Grande, “brighter days ahead”
• Best album: Sabrina Carpenter — “Short n’ Sweet”
• Best collaboration: Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die With A Smile”
• Best hip hop: Doechii — “Anxiety”
• Best R&B: Mariah Carey — “Type Dangerous”
• Best country: Megan Moroney, “Am I Okay?”
• Best K-pop: Lisa ft. Doja Cat & Raye, “Born Again”
• Best alternative: Sombr, “Back to Friends”
• Best rock: Coldplay, “All My Love”
• Best Latin: Shakira, “Soltera”
• Best Afrobeats: Tyla, “Push 2 Start”
• MTV Push Performance of the Year: KATSEYE, “Touch”
• Best long-form video: Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
• Video for good: Charli xcx — “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Best direction: Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
• Best art direction: Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
• Best cinematography: Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
• Best editing: Tate McRae — “Just Keep Watching (From F1 The Movie)”
• Best choreography: Doechii — “Anxiety”
• Best visual effects: Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
• Song of the summer: Tate McRae — “Just Keep Watching (From F1 The Movie)”
• Best group: BLACKPINK